Two legally blind women sue area banks over ATM accessibility

Created 08/06/2013 - 2:34pm

Two women — both legally blind — filed federal lawsuits against seven banking companies Monday in U.S. District Court in Nashville, alleging that the banks’ inaccessible ATMs violated the Americans with Disabilities Act.

The suits against Capital Bank, First Tennessee Bank, Wilson Bank and Trust, Electric Service Credit Union, Avenue Bank and Midsouth Bank claim the facilities’ ATMs do not have the features mandated by the ADA for visually impaired individuals, such as voice guidance and tactile keyboards.

Susan Welchly of Tennessee and Ashley Summers of Alabama, who filed the suits, are both legally blind due to retinitis pigmentosa, which is a damaged retina eye condition.

Welchly also filed two suits against Cadence Bank and First Bank earlier this year on the same grounds.

The ADA requires that banks and financial institutions providing ATMs must ensure the machines are accessible to and independently useable by individuals who are blind or otherwise visually impaired.